Thill-coupling.



PATENTED JUNE 25, 1907.

H. H. WEIGART.

THILL COUPLING. APPLICATION FILED .TUNE6,1906- 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

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PATENTED'JUNE .25, 1907. H. WEIGART.

THILL COUPLING.

-APPLIOATION FILED JUNE 5, 1906.

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UNITED STATES HORACE H. WEIGART, OF INWOOD, CALIFORNIA.

THlLL-COUPLING.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 25, 1907.

Application filed June 5, 1906. Serial 320,326-

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HORACE H. WEIGART, a citizen of the United States,residing at Inwood, in the county of Shasta, State of California, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Thill-Couplings; and Ido hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exactdescription of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in theart to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention has relation tomeans for connecting thills with a vehicleaxle.

It is the object of the invention to provide a coupling device for thepurpose mentioned that shall be durable, noiseless, and not liable, inany of its parts, to get out of operation or to require re-adjustmentafter once being fixed in place.

The nature of the invention is to be ascertained from a casualexamination of the annexed drawings, forming a part of thisspecification. I will, therefore, proceed at once with a detaileddisclosure of the invention, in view of the said drawings, pointing outthe improvement with particularity in the subjoined claim.

Ofthe drawings :Figure 1 designates a top view of' my improved thillcoupling. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the ball-andsocket joint. Fig. 3is a longitudinal section. Fig. 4 is a bottom plan view of the nut.

The same figures of reference designate the same parts or features, asthe case may be, wherever theyoccur.

In the drawings, 5 designates the vehicle axle and 6 a form of clip orfastening means by which the rear end of the bar 7 is secured to theaxle. These parts and features being unimportant so far as the noveltyof the invention is concerned may be 'of any serviceable andsatisfactory form. The forward end of the bar 7 is provided with a ball8, to which strengthening ribs 9 are led from opposite sides of the bar.

10 and 11 constitute clamping members of a ball bearing, each memberbeing cupshaped on its inner side so that the two may receive thespherical end 8 of the bar 9 between them, and so that when the saidmembers are clamped on the said sphere or ball, as they will be by thebolt 12 passing through them and having a head 13 on one end and a nut14 turned on the screwthreaded part of the other end, a completeball-and-socket joint may be formed, connecting the thill members withthe bar of the clip or, in other words, forming the thill coupling.

In all instances, in addition to clamping the ball in the cup-shapedsockets of the thill-iron members 10 and 11, I pass a pivot pin 18through the ends of said members, and through the ball, as shown, toinsure safety and strength of the parts.

The head of the nut 14 is provided with notches 16 on the under side ofthe flange formed on its top, which notches extend up into the peripheryof the flange and are engaged by the free end of a spring 17 fixed atits other end upon one of the clamping members, so as to lock the nutagainst turning.

The two members 10 and 11 constitute the thill irons and they aresuitably bolted together, as at 18, and formed or shaped to moval, isobvious.

The ball and socket are not provided for the purpose of allowing thethills to turn or be moved in all directions but'in order to form aconnection that it will be easy to keep from rattling. The thills aredesigned to move up and down only, the in 18 permitting of this and alsoserving to reep the ball 18 in place in its bearings.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is In athill-coupling, a bar having a ball or sphere-shaped end, strengtheningribs lead ing from opposite sides of the bar to the ball, combined withthe thill-iron divided longitudinally into two members, each provided onits rear end with a ball or cup-shaped socket to engage the sphere orball on the end of the bar between them, a bolt and nut for clampingsaid two members on said ball or sphere, notches in the head of the saidnut,

- from turning, a pivot-pin passed horizontally and a spring secured atone end to one of said i In testimony whereof, I aflix my signature,members and at the other free end engag- 1 I11 presence of twowitnesses.

ing one of the notches on the bolt to keep it HORACE H WVEIGART throughsaid cu p-shaped clamps and the ball Vitnesses:

between them, and means for connecting the A. W. SMITH, two thi11-ironmembers. I W. H. HORSLEY.

